


The Lost Queen (the Prequel)

by YolanthaWolf



Series: The Lost Queen (the Prequel) [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2020-11-08 23:00:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20843438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YolanthaWolf/pseuds/YolanthaWolf
Summary: A noble lady is married to an evil, deformed king against her will. With almost everyone against her, she seeks to rid him of his curse, and have the world of Lashe no longer be ruled with an iron fist.





	1. Banquet Proposal

During the reign of King Kadrainth, banquets were pretty rare, and were usually made so everyone can feast on what their King caught for them... or at least that's what everyone believed. In reality, only the nobles were called, the very ones that would turn their noses away at the sight of a wild creature being killed and cooked for them. But, to please their cruel ruler... they had to endure and eat happily what was given to them. Especially when their King was in the same room as them.  
King Kadrainth was not a looker himself. In fact, everyone considered him to be quite ugly, not to mention physically and mentally handicapped. He was born misshapen, way larger than any of his siblings, with large fangs, horns, wings and tails, so much so that his own parents were horrified at the sight of their offspring, and ended up locking him as a little boy into the vaults underneath the castle. Because of this, he spoke rarely, and when he did it was an amalgamation of poorly constructed sentences and growls, using words he sometimes heard the people sent to feed and bathe him used. As such, he never delivered speeches; instead, his Dragonlord would.  
He sat on his throne, looking down at his subjects as he breathed slowly. Everyone could see he was eyeing females, and not just any females: he was looking for a beautiful, fertile wife that would give him many heirs. Now, usually when someone is looking for a mate, they also take into account her likes, her dislikes, her personality... what could bond them in a relationship. But Kadrainth was not looking for any of that, only for a woman that looked good enough to mother his children, and so far he was deeply disappointed. All those females were like wooden planks, both in shapes and how thin they were, looking as if a slightly more powerful wind would break them in half. Some were a bit better, but not enough for him to gain an interest.  
Until he saw... her. In the back, talking to her father, was a female that caught his attention. She seemed rather plump, with a round face and small, delicate hands, displaying a subtle smile as she fluttered her many eyes. Her white hair was just as voluminous as her body, cascading softly on her back from the ponytail it was caught in, and two large strands in the front on her chest, cupping it beautifully.  
"YOU!", the King shouted, pointing his massive sword in the direction of the girl.  
Without any hesitation, the father got up quickly, and grabbed the hands of not one, but two daughters to bring forth. Kadrainth looked confused to see all of a sudden two white-haired young ladies being put in front of him, which he also discovered has a red ombre in it.  
"My King... you wanted to see my daughters?"  
"You... have two?"  
"Yes my King. Allow me to present them to you-"  
"Who are you?"  
"Commander Forcas, my King.", the father replied, his hands shaking a bit due to being to close to that massive beast. "Anyway, she is my eldest daughter, Lendenta-"  
"Her!"  
"... excuse me, my King?"  
"The King spoke clearly.", intervened the Dragonlord, who always stood besides his master, "The King wants your daughter."  
"F-for what!?"  
"Oh, just for a small chat, of course. Are you that dense, or are you just pretending to?! The King wants your daughter as his Royal Consort."  
"My King, please do not... she is too young, a-and too small for you..."  
"Give her! Or I kill you!"  
Normally, when someone would hear a threat phrased so poorly, they would laugh it off and just leave. But for Commander Forcas, it was a completely different situation, as in front of him was a 50 foot beast that could easily jump down on him and eat him alive. So, instead of trying to fight anymore, with tears in his eyes, he took the daughter Kadrainth pointed at by the hand, and walked with her closer to the King. He could feel her body shaking, and could see the disgust in her eyes, but he could do nothing.  
"Father...", she tried pulling away, shaking her head. "Please do not."  
"Lendenta, come on now... you know none of us has a choice. The King is above us all."  
"MY KING! PLEASE TAKE ME INSTEAD!"  
Forcas almost jumped up from where he stood, because he recognized who shouted those words. He walked away from Lendenta to his younger daughter, a small child with barely anything in her head, Vithossa.  
"Child, the King has spoken. He wants your sister, not you."  
"But Lendenta doesn't want him. I do, I always wanted to be Royal Consort."  
"Vithossa, you are a child, look at you. You barely started developing your body and you think you can already get married and start a family? No, not yet. You will marry a nice rich noble when the time comes. Until then, you will live with me and your mother, and your sister will become the Royal Consort, understood? The King chose."  
He could feel his heart breaking, talking like that to her, but he knew her small frail body could never handle such a tough beast, unlike her sister, who was way more solid. Seeing the tears in her eyes, he remembered just how much of a crybaby she really is, and how many times she won him over with those watery eyes. But that fight was not one she was going to win. Instead, Forcas turned away from her, as his wife grabbed Vithossa by the arm and pulled her rather harshly back to her seat, while he finished what he had to do: bring Lendenta to King Kadrainth. With careful steps, he guided his daughter to the empty seat besides the King, as she got to look at him a bit better. While Kandrainth was pleased with her, Lendenta was utterly disgusted; not only he looked repulsive in her opinion, his manners seemed to lack as well, the sleeves of his robes stained with what she assumed was grease and maybe his spit as well, seeing as he was drooling a bit at the corners of his mouth, and in front of him was no silverware.  
"Sit with him, Lendenta... sit with him and be nice. I will come after you at the end."  
"Why do I have a feeling that I won't be allowed to come home tonight...", Lendenta muttered to herself, then turned to give Kadrainth a forced smile, backing away a bit as his smell hit her nose.  
It wasn't that he was dirty, per se, it was the fact that whatever perfume he was using, he clearly put way too much of it, and people on the other side of the room could probably smell it, let alone the ones closest to him.  
"Your name?", he asked, lowering himself a bit to take better looks at her.  
"Lendenta, my King.", she replied just as she backed away from him, both from fear of him lowering himself so much his chin will hit her head, and because of the smell.  
"Maiden?"  
"Yes... I am a maiden..."  
"Marry me?"  
"My King...", she started, ready to immediately refuse, but then realizing that in by doing so, she could put her family in danger. "Now, we do not know each other that well, perhaps we can try know each other for a few months, years- or maybe a week will be enough.", Lendenta explained, backing away even more when the man growled hearing they might take months or years to know each other.  
"No, right away. Healthy babies are made when the woman is young."  
"Right..."  
Looking over to her father, she started to mouth off many insults, as he just stayed there and watched with his wife. Vithossa, instead, was holding her knife by the blade, and she was clearly not realizing the deep cut she was making in her palm, while with the other she managed to snatch her mother's wine glass. The young girl drank about half of it in one go, then quickly shut all her eyes tightly as her body started to shake, and spat most of it back in the glass, looking disgusted.  
Lendenta then looked back at the King, trying to censor her disgust as much as she could. She could notice, when he was eating, just how much he was drooling, perhaps from keeping his mouth open all the time. Trying to show him a bit of kindness, she took a handkerchief and took it slowly to the corner of his mouth, wiping gently.  
"What are you doing?"  
"Oh, I... was cleaning you."  
"You do that in lake.", he commented before he let out a loud laugh.  
As the night went on, Lendenta remained bitter towards her family, and observed the King's behavior. For someone who was so feared, he was rather docile when pleased, often giving her weird pats on the head or back when she accepted to eat more, up to the point where he let her drink from his own cup, one so large she had to hold with both hands.   
When the banquet ended, Lendenta learned that, just as she predicted, she would not be allowed to go back with her family. Once the King left, she was approached by the Dragonlord.  
"The King was very pleased with the way you behaved. So much so that you must have heard that he'd want you to stay."  
"I heard... it's not like he's a quiet man. He speaks so loudly... almost like he is shouting. One could go deaf from that."  
"Yes, but he is a beast. Beasts don't have much brain."  
"Are you... insulting your King behind his back?", Lendenta asked as she squinted her eyes.  
"Oh young lady, we all do this here. How can we not, with such an idiot as our King? Perhaps... with you, as Royal Consort, he could change. He's been looking for one for ages, but he does not seem to like the thin ones. He said himself he likes the fat ones."  
"Thank you, you are so sweet. First you tell me the King wants me to stay here for the night, then you insult him, and now you call me fat, what a gentleman. Are you married?"  
"Well, no, why does that-"  
"I can see why.", Lendenta growled a bit as she picked her glass, and threw the wine in it in the Dargonlord's face. "Now, take me to his chambers... please.", she continued with a soft smile.  
"In his chambers? Now? Oh no no... first we must wash and bathe you-"  
But he could not finish his sentence, as Lendenta slapped him powerfully across the face, leaving a red mark.  
"How dare you call me unclean as well? Bastard!"  
"Alright, alright, calm down! I will take you to his chambers like this. But if he complains about any smell, it's your fault."  
"Uh-huh. You disgusting people."  
Getting down from her seat, Lendenta glared as the Dragonlord as he guided her to the King's chambers, all the while thinking about what she did. It took her a bit to realize that indeed, something deep inside her told her to defend him from a court that clearly despises him, even though she could clearly see why, and did not like Kadrainth herself. She pondered... could it have been love? Or just pity? But she could not dwell on it for long, as she soon found herself at the door of his chambers.  
Once the doors opened, she felt like she was transported into another world. While the rest of the castle seemed dark and threatening, the King's chambers were surprisingly very clean and welcoming. She walked around slowly, looking at the paintings, until she felt the warmth of the fireplace. Sitting on the pillows next to the fireplace, she felt the soft materials they were made from as she looked around more. Behind her, there was the bed, hidden behind thick curtains, and surrounded by massive bookshelves, to Lendenta's surprise filled with books; frankly, after that night, she believed the King could not read. The lady sat there, in shock over how impeccable the place was, until she heard and saw a door next to the bed open. Looking into that direction, she could see who that was: King Kadrainth, in what seemed to be sleeping robes.


	2. Pity and Mercy

Finding herself into King Kadrainth’s bedroom, and with him in it as well, Lendenta started to be afraid. Right there, it was only the two of them, with nobody besides the guards at the doors present. Who even knew what he could be up to, and she started to fear for the worst as he walked up to her.  
“My King… please, let us not anger our Creator and do something we shouldn’t do right now…”, she tried to reason, thinking the next second Kadrainth will start trying to mate with her.  
“I am tired. Meal was exhausting.”  
“Oh. So you… want to sleep. But if you do, why did you even walk all the way up to me? With all due respect, you could have just gotten into your bed and started sleeping. You are the King, you do what you want, after all.”  
“You tired?”  
“I… do not know, to be honest. I suppose I should be- wait… do you understand everything I say?”  
“Not all.”, he shook his head, then sat on the pillows next to her. “Only some words. You use too many.”  
“Too many words? How is something like that even possible? Well… I suppose since you understand so little of our language… can you read or write?”  
“No.”  
“The why do you have all of those books?”, Lendenta wondered, pointing at the shelves filled with books.  
“Father and mother. They read them to my siblings. Not to me.”  
“I read that you killed them. Them and your siblings as well.”  
“Yes.”  
As he said the word, he laid on his abdomen, looking close into the fire.  
“Don’t sit like that...you’ll burn your eyes!”, Lendenta scolded, pulling him away as much as she could until he let out a soft growl and moved himself. “May I ask… why… did you do that? If you can answer, of course… you did say you were tired.”  
“Locked me down under castle. Kept me away.”  
With those simple words, Lendenta could feel something sharp pierce her heart. Just like everyone else, she knew her King was a handicapped man that had to kill his entire family to get the throne. But what she did not know was exactly what his childhood was.  
“I… see… “, Lendenta let out a short sigh. “Perhaps it would be best for us to sleep. It would be extremely rude to ask more on the matter.”  
“Father wrote his life. Book is in table next to bed.”  
“A journal of the previous King? No, I can’t touch that, even if he is long dead. That should not be touched by anyone outside the Royal Family.”  
“You will be wife. You can read.”  
“Would you… would you mind if I read it while you sleep?”  
Kadrainth shook his head, and got up slowly, as Lendenta kept on looking into the flames of the fireplace. Her mind was puzzled, keeping her from thinking she is tired. Eventually, she got up as well, and walked small steps towards the bed. While she did know that the King was perhaps way too tired to attempt do anything to her, there was still a possibility that she took into account. Before getting in bed, Lendenta made out of the many pillows in there a wall-like structure between the two. She thought that it would most likely not do anything to stop him, but it helped her feel more confident.  
Throughout the whole night, while Kadrainth was sleeping, Lendenta read the journal. There have been several time where she just wished to close it and throw it away, seeing just how dismissive he was of his son, but at the same time… she could also understand why. While never thinking about it directly, she did realize that, under that sort of pressure, she would have most likely done the same; nobody wants a deformed son, after all. Eventually, when the sun was close to rising, she decided she was tired enough to go to sleep.  
However, Lendenta’s sleep was cut short by Kadrainth’s tail. Not realizing the new person in the bed, he threw it with all its weight on Lendenta’s abdomen, causing her to let out a loud scream of pain.  
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! That’s not how a man wakes up a lady!”  
But he did not respond, choosing to remain asleep as he laid on his side, facing away from her. Glaring, Lendenta rubbed the harmed side as she laid back on the bed, trying to fall asleep again.  
“Kadrainth?”, she asked out of the blue, but not turning to look at him.  
“Yes?”  
“Do you… do you know what pity is?”  
“No.”  
“It’s when you feel sorry for someone. I wanted to ask you because… I… feel pity for you. I really do. And I wanted to let you know.”  
“Why?”  
“I don’t know. I guess I just wanted to tell you, since you picked me to be your Royal Consort and all that, maybe… just maybe… we should be honest with one another. We will spend a lot of time together, might as well try make it fun.”  
“Fun? I fight, no fun.”  
“What about times of peace? We will have those as well.”  
“I don’t like peace. Boring.”  
“You see adventure only in war? That’s not always true.”  
“For me yes. I feel alive then.”  
“Want to know when I feel alive? I feel alive… when I see peace. When I see everyone happy.”  
“I want everyone to die.”  
Hearing those words, Lendenta laid slowly on her back and looked up at the ceiling. In a way, she could understand why; she read what his father wrote about him, the harmful words he used to describe his youngest son, the way the Dragonlord insulted him and revealed that pretty much the entire court hates their King. But on the other hand, she knew she had to do something to make him think otherwise, as not everyone was responsible for the way his life turned out.  
She wanted to speak, but all words seemed to not want to escape her throat. Instead, she turned her head to look at Kadrainth, and noticed he was on his back as well and looking back at her.  
“Do… “, Lendenta muttered after a few second, “Do you want me to die as well?”  
“No.”  
“What about… after I give you heirs? Will you still keep me, or will you kill me?”  
“Keep you.”  
“Why? Do you love me?”  
Kadrainth looked into her eyes, then shook his head and slowly stood up in his bed, leaving Lendenta staring blankly in the direction his head was once.  
“Then why would you keep me? There must be a reason.”  
“You nice. To me.”  
“So you would keep me because I am nice to you. But you are the King, everyone must adore you. Like… like my father did. You asked for me, he gave me to you, even if do not want it. Yes, I said it, I do not want to marry you, but if it is your wish… I cannot refuse now, can I?”  
“Everyone hates me. I heard them.”  
“You… did?”  
Just then, Lendenta remembered what the Dragonlord said about Kadrainth, wondering just how many of those insults he has to endure on a daily basis.  
“Last night, your Dragonlord said some really mean things about you, and I got very angry and… I may have thrown wine in his face and then slapped him.”  
“Really?”  
“Yes. It felt good for some strange reason.”  
Kadrainth smiled, and then let out a loud laugh before laying on his back in bed again. Lendenta, on the other hand, felt as if he wasn’t taking anything seriously.  
“Did you even understand what I said?”  
“Yes. It is funny.”  
“Oh, is that so? Because it feels like you don’t really care about what I just did. Since you started laughing… it almost felt like you took it as a joke. But it was not a joke, I really did these things for you.”  
“I believe you. But they not change.”  
“You have a point… the Dragonlord said that maybe I can change you, that I can shape you into behaving another way, and I felt insulted by that. You must be as well.”  
“They try change me?”  
“Well clearly they are not pleased with how you behave, and what do you do when you are not pleased with something? You change it of course, is basic knowledge.”  
“They I should kill them all?”  
“No, of course not!”, Lendenta snapped as she got up from the bed, and began to walk around the room in a circle, trying to clear her mind. “No, you should listen to them! They have a point, and perhaps it would be best if you… softened up a bit. You know, not killing everyone that you don’t like.”  
“You are woman.”  
“And? What if I am a woman? Can I not have an opinion?”  
“You can. But the King decides. You make babies.”  
“Well guess what. I will not let you touch me. I will not even sleep with you in the same bed again, but in a locked room so you cannot reach, until you change. I am not asking you to be nice to everyone, but try be more calm. Try become wise and become a good King.”  
“I like you, you have guts.”  
“I do… sometimes. Now… I want to ask you something. Why did you pick me? And why you haven’t decided to look for another woman as of now? You clearly see that you cannot keep me only to spread my legs for you at night and give you heirs.”  
“Because you are you. You are funny.”  
Hearing the answer, she let out a huge sigh and continued to pace around the room, feeling defeated. She did so for a few minutes, as Kadrainth looked at her. And she could feel it as well, but not in a comfortable way; while she never turned her head to look at him directly, for some reason Lendenta felt as if he was looking only at certain parts of her body. But when she did look, Kadrainth’s eyes were actually focused on her face.  
“You are chubby.”  
“Yeah… you noticed. You and everyone else. I just like to eat, alright?”  
“But I love that.”  
“You do? What, is this why you chose me?”  
“Chubby means strong. Strong means healthy babies.”  
“Of course, back at it with the babies. I repeat, I am not here to just be your personal surrogate. If I am going to become Royal Consort, I might as well try have it my way. And my way means that you will have to treat me with respect, and that you will have to learn manners.”   
“Hah!”, Kadrainth laughed as he got up from the bed, and walked to her. “You have guts. I like that. Let’s put wedding today.”  
“Wait, the wedding today?! Who can even prepare anything in one day?”  
“Royal Magi can.”  
“Still… this fast. We met not even 24 hours ago. So if you want us to marry now… this marriage shall be very rocky at the start.”  
“Wedding today, it’s best.”  
And with that, he ended the argument. Lendenta, as much as she wanted to argue, saw no point in doing so anymore, clearly he was not interested in listening. She figured however that, later on, she might be able to get to him and be able to educate him; after all, in her opinion, even an old mount was capable of learning new trick, and her objective was to apply that to Kadrainth. But that was for later, what she had to focus on the moment was the wedding he suddenly decided to organise.  
Usually, a girl dreams all her life of her wedding day, what dress she would wear, what her future husband would look like… but that was the least of Lendenta’ s concerns. After Kadrainth took his decision, she was sent almost immediately to the Royal Magi to be measured and have her dress made using magic. She stood there, waiting for it to be made, as she looked at all the potions resting on the shelves of an old cabinet. After a few minutes, she asked out of the blue:  
“Will my deflowering hurt?”  
Hearing that, the Royal Magi lifted her head and lowered her glasses to look at Lendenta. This Royal Magi, an old tropical type dragon, with 3 violet eyes, one located between the other two right where the bridge of the nose should be, light gray skin and blonde hair, showed a little smile on her thin lips, then let out a giggle.  
“You can ask one, she will say yes, but when you ask the second she might say no. I cannot give you a certain answer, you just have to let it happen and see.”  
“I think it will… have you not seen how big the King is?”  
“Oh my dear, but who even said the size of a man’s body dictates also the size of his penis? For all we know, it could be tiny. I think you are more worried about his size than the actual act.”  
“I suppose… when I was small, I was once taken to a wedding. After the feast… everyone starting cheering for the newlyweds to go to their chambers to consummate their marriage. I was not supposed to, but I sneaked to the door to listen there for some reason… and then I heard the terrible cries of pain. There was some difference of height between them, but when I asked, my mother shyly told me it was because of the deflowering.”  
“Again, it depends from woman to woman. The only advice I can give you is not to think too much about it. Do not let it ruin your wedding, when the time comes, it comes, and there is nothing you can do to stop it. You cannot remain a maiden forever after all, we have needs too. Take me for example.”, the Magi began to recount as she helped Lendenta into her dress. “I was also afraid of the pain of deflowering, and because of it I said I would never sleep with a man. And I didn’t, for many years… I tried ignoring my heat as much as I could. Until it started to make me feel bad, and then, I finally decided to find myself a mate. Yes, it did hurt, but it only hurts the first time. If you are brave enough to do it, in the long run it’s worth it. Now, what do you think of your dress?”  
Being too focused on listening to the Magi, Lendenta didn’t even look at the dress. She gasped a bit in amazement, admiring the soft white fabrics and the pearls around her wrists and neck, as well as how beautifully it wrapped around her body, showing off her figure way better than any other dress she wore before could ever do.  
“It looks… wonderful. And is so soft and silky… and lightweight. Almost like I am wearing nothing at all.”  
“Well it will be a long night, you might as well feel comfortable in something you will wear for a few hours.”  
“You are right… uhm. I didn’t ask your name.”  
“Nazziola the Gifted and Tender.”  
“What a wonderful name… and you truly are gifted. Gifted with words to calm ever the most nervous brides. Tell me… you can see the future, can you?”  
“Yes.”  
“Please… tell me… tell me about my future. Tell me if I will give the King sons.”  
“My dear, are you sure you want to know about this? Some choose not to… it takes away from the suspense.”  
“I do not care. I want to know if all of this will be worth it. I do not want to end up dooming myself by marrying this beast.”  
“Lendenta… the Magnificent. You have a bright future.”, Nazziola said as she took Lendenta’s hands in hers, “The King will put in you many sons and daughters, but none will survive. They will die all in the womb because of him, innocent souls murdered by their own father before they could cast eyes into this world.”  
“If that is the case… then why should I even go to the wedding? To remember forever how all my children will die? To waste my life like this?”  
“Let me finish young one. Yes, you will lose so many… but in the end, you will have twin sons. Strong and handsome, with brilliant minds. But… “  
“But… but what? Tell me, I need to know.”  
“But they will forever fight for the throne. For all their qualities, they will have equal defects, and will stop at nothing to claim the throne they so rightfully deserve. In the end, there shall be one King… but the other twin must die. They will hunt each other for many years, and in the end, one must die. And not just the twin, his wife, and his children will die with him, his name erased from history. And you will have to cradle that dying son into your arms in his last moments.”  
Lendenta remained speechless, lowering her ears and then biting her lower lip.   
“Why… why does one have to die? It doesn’t have to be like this, it makes no sense. What fault do they have for being twins? There should be none!”  
“Calm child… if it’s one’s fate to die, then there is nothing we can do to change the Death Warlords’ choices. All that we can do is see which Death Warlord shall come pick his soul, and claim it. Until then, may you pray the merciful one will take it, and not the vengeful one.”  
“No. I will pray instead for both to live. Because I want none to die, it’s not right. And you cannot make me change my decision.”  
“Beware. You can open up a multitude of future scenarios and who knows how they will end. But for now… nothing you do will change the timeline. Those unborn babies will still die, all you can do is wonder when will this infantile murder stop. That I cannot tell.”  
“Nazziola, I beg of you… you must help me avert this.”  
“I cannot, I am afraid. I am not above the Warlords. They have made their decision and we must just stay quiet and accept our fate.”  
Letting go of Lendenta’s hands, Nazziola then walked away a bit from her and inspected the dress for any defects. Then, after that quick check, Lendenta was taken at once by the Dragonlord, to be married to the King. Even the little excitement she had before disappeared, part of her regretting asking about her future. Thinking of how most of her children would die inside the womb… drained her of the little happiness and hope she had. She could have tried to run, but she would have gotten caught, that was certain. And who knows, maybe there was some way to prevent the sons that would survive from trying to kill each other, she had to figure it out and try her best.  
“You seem deep in thought.”, the Dragonlord commented on a rather loud volume, clearly meant to distract Lendenta from whatever she was thinking.  
“Thank you for noticing. And how polite of you to interrupt me.”  
“Ah but you cannot be in thought during your own wedding. Imagine the embarrassment of not waking up in time to put the ring on the King’s finger, scribes would write about this dreadful moment for generations! It would appear in history books with your pretty name having the blame pinned on.”  
“Are you always this charming or is it a special week for you or something? How does your wife even stand you? Oh wait… you must have none.”  
“You little spoiled brat, I am married. And I also have a very handsome son, mind you.”  
“Is it really yours?”  
She had only one second to duck, in order to avoid his tail smashing into one of the pillars on her right.  
“How dare you think my own wife would cheat on me?! Little insolent girl! I know who your father is… and by my name I swear I will make his life a living nightmare if you keep on saying such things!”  
“Doguntunth! Don’t snap at the future Royal Consort, do you want your soul on a spike! And in front of our son as well!”, a woman standing by the door shouted, covering her son’s ears despite him looking like a young adult.  
“Caervintaenth!”  
“Yes, I heard it all! Your sure have a loud mouth.”  
“Mother… “, the son said on an embarrassed tone as he removed her hands from his ears, “Please stop. I am not a child anymore.”  
“Caervintaenth, if you heard it all, you surely cannot approve of her words.”  
“My love, just… come here with me. You won’t have to work with her, just with the King, no need to make everything a fuss.”  
Doguntunth huffed, and walked towards his wife with a little hesitation. She then proceeded to whispers something into his ear, either funny of cute enough to put a little smile on his face, as their son looked at Lendenta curiously.  
“Uhm… hello.”, Lendenta said as she waved a bit, trying to be as friendly as she could to the young man, that looked around her age. “What’s your name?”  
“Hello… or should I say my Consort? Should I bow?”  
“No need to bow now… I’m not Royal Consort yet.”, she giggled, amused a bit by him freaking out over what to call her. “What is your name? Mine is Lendenta the Magnificent.”  
“I am Zylror the Clever.”  
“Zylror the Clever… what a nice name. Fits your looks as well.”  
“Uhm… I do not know if I should accept such compliments. It’s just that… I’m just the son of the Royal Dragonlord and the Royal Translator.”  
“She is the Royal Translator?”  
“Yes. And my mother thinks I take after her, that when the next King comes, I will be his Royal Translator, but I don’t know… I barely know other languages.”  
“Well you are still young, and you have time.”  
“Sister!!”  
Lendenta’s ears perked up as she was amazed hearing her little sister’s voice, and even more so seeing her jump from behind the door located in front of Doguntunth and Caervintaenth.  
“Vithossa? What are you doing here?”  
“What do you mean what I am doing here? Mother and father are here too for your wedding. From the second the King said the word, it spread around like wildfire, I swear.”, she explained, then turned to see Zylror. “And who are you?”  
“Zylror the Clever, you must be Lendenta’s sister?”  
“Her younger one to be precise! Vithossa the Beautiful!”  
“Well, your parents did not lie on this one, you sure are a beautiful lady.”  
“Oh a lady I am! Seventeen years, no more, no less.”  
Lendenta rolled her eyes and giggled, seeing her sister lie yet again about her age.  
“I see. Well you surely got the attention of many lads your age. I am nineteen… sadly you should be at least a year older for us to be able to spend time together.”  
“Zylror the Clever? More like Zylror the Unfunny. I will turn eighteen soon anyway so what is the point?”   
“My parents are rather strict… I would not be allowed. Glad to see yours have a different vision.”  
He smiled softly, looking a bit down at her with a gentle look. But the gaze had to be cut short as the Royal Priest called for everyone to come into the main hallway of the castle, for the ceremony to start. Without saying another word, Zylror went on to follow his parents, while Vithossa was left looking at him, finally noticing he was a Nordic type like Doguntunth and Caervintaenth, by the fur on their wings and tails.  
Lendenta found herself being taken there as well, her sister grabbing her hand and pulling her into the large room. She got taken quite far, up to the first row, where her parents were sitting.   
A little bit confused, she walked with small steps up to Kadraith and the Royal Priest, a rather young man with black hair and light grey skin, making his blue eyes pop out. Lendenta sat next to the King, looking like she was focused, but she wasn’t. The entire ceremony she moved very mechanically, not paying attention at all. She was after all still deep in thought, and didn’t even realise when the King leaned down to kiss her, keeping her eyes open with no change in her expression.  
Same went for the wedding feast; no matter how many dancers jumped in front of her, or how many nobles came in to congratulate her, she would stay silent, maybe blink and smile once or twice. She eventually opened up a bit more with her parents, then with her sister when they came in to talk.  
“So… you’re Royal Consort now. How does it feel?”, asked Vithossa, this time with a bit of jealousy in her voice.  
“Doesn’t feel like anything… it feels empty. I do not like it that much.”  
“The King should have picked me.”, Vithossa finally snapped, and her older sister could see it was because she was drunk, the red cheeks and slightly slurred speech giving it away. “I wanted to become Royal Consort, I still do. But no… he had to pick you. Why… because you are more beautiful? Smarter? Taller? Older? Why did he pick you?”  
“You would have to ask him for that. But I would suggest not to, you are clearly drunk. And you are just fourteen.”  
“Listen up here. I am pissed. I wanted this, but you took this from me.”  
“And how exactly I took it away from you? He chose me, not you. Plain and simple. Now stop drinking and go to sleep, you will have a massive headache tomorrow.”  
“I don’t care… I feel like this should have been my day. And now it’s ruined. Well, at least you are not happy either. Everyone saw you are not really all that happy, and I heard them say that they do not blame you, who would want to marry a Beast? Well I would want him, he is the King.”  
“So you would marry him only for money?”  
Vithossa looked at Lendenta confused, then at the glass she was holding, trying to process what she just said. After a little while she let out a sigh and rolled her eyes, surprised by her own words.   
“Can you believe… I didn’t realise I said that?”, she confessed.  
“Go to sleep then.”  
“No… you need to taste this wine. At first I thought it was gross, but after so many glasses… it tastes divine.”  
“Vithossa you are a little girl. Stop that, do mother and father know?”  
“Of course not. If they knew, I wouldn’t be drunk now, right?”  
“Oh mother will spank your bare bottom a thousand times when she hears of this. Too bad I will not be around anymore to tell her.”  
“No… you’ll drown in jewelry like some spoiled brat. Lucky you, and you are not even happy about it. I would jump up and down like crazy.”  
“I am not happy, Vithossa… not after what I learned. And I do not love him. I do pity him, though, look at him… he has something human in him. And if I am going to be married to him I want to have that part of him come to light, and be liked more by his court. Just imagine… after all this years, to be finally loved by the people around you. It would be amazing.”  
“Are you serious?”  
“Why of course I am what sort of question is that?! I might as well try make this enjoyable! It’s not like I will lose many children, and I am married to a Beast more than twice my size.”  
“… and? Big deal if you lose children with him, you can make some with a member of his court and lie it’s his. How many wives of other Kings and Emperors have done this? I cannot even count how many.”  
“Do I look like that type of woman? Come on. Now give me that glass.”  
“No! Get your own!”  
“I do not need to drink from it! I want you to stop drinking from it, got it?”  
“You don’t control what I do.”  
Lendenta, angry, got up and grabbed her sister by the arm, trying to get the cup that was holding the blood red liquid. Vithossa on the other hand started snarling and growling, ready to even bite her sister to protect the substance she started liking perhaps a bit too much.  
“What is going on here?!”, Forcas yelled as he ran up to them and finally separated the sisters.  
This caused the cup Vithossa was holding to drop, spilling the wine on the floor.  
“Vithossa… what are you doing, drinking wine?”  
“Just drinking wine? Father, she is drunk.”  
“I am not drunk! You all are drunk! Now bring me another cup, sister.”  
“Vithossa, don’t you dare talk to her like that. What are you thinking, drinking at this age?!”  
Forcas grabbed her by the shoulders and started shaking her, feeling extremely uncomfortable being watched by so many. In Lashe, there was nothing more humiliating than being an alcoholic, or having an alcoholic family member. People that were like this were always abandoned by their families, and he knew everyone was expecting to see Vithossa in the streets the next day with a little bag of clothes and maybe some food, even though his heart could never let him do such a thing, especially to a little girl like her.  
“Come on… I am taking your mother and you back home. Sorry everyone, we have to leave early… but I wish only happiness for my daughter as Royal Consort alongside her husband.”  
Lendenta started feeling bad again, but good at the same time; she hoped her father and mother would not kick her little sister out, but just scold her, and try keep her away from drinks as much as they can. She could only watch her family leave for a few seconds, as Kadrainth suddenly grabbed her arm, and began pulling her towards the only location she knew he was going to: the newlyweds chambers.


	3. Even the Most Beautiful Maidens Can Fall Into Despair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!!WARNING!!!  
Chapter contains mild NSFW

All across the Capital spread the news; commander Forcas, just like any other father would do, finally kicked out his youngest daughter. Initially he and his wife refused to do so, and for good reasons; Vithossa being very young, and the fact that the wedding of Lendenta was the first time she ever got drunk. But the pressure from his fellow commanders forced him to do it.  
Finding herself suddenly without a home, she at least felt a bit better her parents packed her everything she owned and some food. But soon she found out she could not just find some abandoned house and hide there, for it was winter, and winters were harsh. She would often sell her jewelry and robes to have enough money for wood and food. Vithossa met other homeless people as well, and they seemed nice enough to sometimes share the little they had with her. Her visits to them eventually landed her a spot into their little hideout, at the edge of the city.  
“Here, here, under the bridge!”, the man that was guiding her explained, waiting for Vithossa to catch up.  
“Thank you… thank you so much… “  
“Don’t thank me, a poor soul like you shouldn’t have been kicked out like that. But do not worry, there are many children here, some your age as well, and mothers and fathers and grandmothers that can help you. Here we try share everything.”  
“I see… “  
The man guided her slowly through the many homeless people there, who looked at her in awe, clearly having recognised her as Forcas’s daughter. Some were even whispering behind her back about how clean her hair looks, or wondering how soft her skin is, but Vithossa tried to ignore them the best she could. Eventually she found herself in front of an old woman, her greasy black hair looking like a waterfall sprouting from her head and framing beautifully her completely white skin. She was a Vampiric type, meaning that she was blind and could not walk into the sunlight, lacked tails, and her wings were rather small and weak, resting next to her body as if they were paralysed.   
The woman smelled around for a bit, then said:  
“I smell new blood. New blood, say who you are.”  
“I… am Vithossa the Beautiful. Daughter of commander Forcas… and his wife Retawassha.”  
“Oh my, you sound so young. Come closer, child… come closer.”  
Scared, Vithossa walked up to the woman and kneeled next to her.  
“Tell me, how did you end up here?”  
“My parents kicked me out… because I was drunk at my sister’s wedding.”  
“Ah… dreadful, I must say. You sound so young.”  
“I am fourteen… I know I shouldn’t have gotten drunk, but I was so angry… and now there is no going back, is it?”  
“Now now… there is still hope. You are a lucky one, there is a way you get start gaining money, since you are of noble blood, and I suppose beautiful.”  
“How?”, she wondered as her eyes seemed to have lighted up, regaining hope.  
“If you want to gain money fast, and get yourself all you need to live, and escape this… I am afraid you will have to sell your body.”  
“Become a whore?! But I am fourteen! And besides, brothels are visited always by gross, old men. If I am to lose my virginity, I might as well have it by a handsome young man.”  
“Child, you are of a noble one. And from what my friends have been telling me about you, and yes they did before they brought you here, you are not that low maintenance. So if you want to be able to satisfy your material needs, this is the only way.”  
“I don’t want to have some old man rape me… “, Vithossa began to whimper.  
“There there… “, the woman said as she began to pet the young one’s head. “They do not let any filthy men go inside the building. Look, I know a matron that you can start working for, her brothel is usually very clean and they pick their customers carefully. With some luck you will end with someone a bit younger.”  
“It would be so embarrassing… selling myself like this. But then there is the money… argh, damn this money! Damn it all!”  
She pondered for a bit there, but she had to face it: she was still her spoiled self, she could not live with very little like the others, and becoming a whore would mean she could have the comfort and money she needed to feel comfortable. But that would have meant selling her own body, her little fragile and soft body that is way too young to be deflowered.  
“I cannot live like you all do… I cannot! But I cannot sell my body either.”  
“You cannot have everything you way. You must choose one option or the other.”  
Vithossa lowered her ears, looking at the woman with little tears forming in her eyes.  
“I… you’re going to probably hate me for this, but I cannot live like you do. I need the money needed to live well, not to worry if I have enough for the next day. I… tell me where that brothel is. I am going to have having to sell myself like this, but if it means me living a good life, then so be it. I will not live in dumps or abandoned houses anymore, I cannot… it’s cold, it’s dirty and dangerous.”  
“The brothel is close to the castle, by the right, you will recognise it easily by the red curtains at the windows. When you get there, knock at the door three times and say “From under the bridge the maiden comes.”. They will know exactly what to do after.”  
Even though the old woman couldn’t see, she would tell by Vithossa’s happy little whimpers that she was going to do it. And indeed, the next morning she packed all she has left, and ran to the brothel in a frenzy, hoping all she was told was not a fraud. Initially she didn’t find it and was ready to just sit on the ground and cry, but walking a bit further revealed the red curtains. They were moving softly in the wind as the windows were open, as well as the gate, as a few men carrying a palanquin.  
“Wait! Please do not close the gates!”  
She ran as fast as she could to the palanquin, begging with her eyes to be let in as well. But the men just glared at her and tried pushing her aside, until Vithossa remembered the words.  
“From under the bridge the maiden comes!”  
Just then, she could see the person inside the palanquin raise their hand, and the men stopping in their tracks. Vithossa soon found that hiding in that palanquin was a succubus, with her hair of a turqouise color, one half lighter than the other, golden horns, and two pairs of eyes, one pink one red, surrounded by a black powder-like substance.  
“From under the bridge, you say?”, she chirped as she looked down at Vithossa. “Well well well, what a beauty from under the bridge. “What’s your name?”  
“V-Vithossa.”  
“Vithossa… so adorable. I am Lilith. Come inside the palanquin, come inside… there is still a long road until my quarters.”  
The girl climbed inside the palanquin with Lilith, then looked at the strange woman up and down. Lilith was letting out an air of extravagance, and always looked at Vithossa from up above, with a large smile that proved to be more creepy than welcoming when combined with her opening her eyes wider than she should.  
“I was told to come here to work for you… since I could make good money and-”  
“Yes yes yes, of course.”, Lilith interrupted. “Sure you can work for us, you look pretty enough for that. How old are you?”  
“Fourteen.”  
“Say you are eighteen. You know… just in case someone might be concerned about that. Not that there would be any, after all.”  
“Will… will I live here?”  
“Of course! Do not worry about rent or anything, just do your job and make men happy, alright? Oh, and another thing… the second I catch you pregnant, abortion. Don’t want to abort? Fine, I’ll just kick you out, ok?”  
“Uhm… alright, I guess. Do we sign a contract or?”  
“Contract? Deary I am not going through the trouble of that. I’ll give you a room to live in and your job is to please any man that picks you. That’s the only thing you need to be concerned about right now.”  
“Doesn’t that make everything seem shady?”  
“And if there is no contract… who will you go to? Prostitution is illegal deary.”  
Lilith smiled and Vithossa looked down, defeated.  
“Now now, no need to be sad. We have arrived, time to see your new room. I think you have enough time to pack before we open up. And you will start working from tonight.”  
“Right… “  
“Because you look really clean and are shaped this beautifully, I will let only the really rich ones with you. Although in time you should also start working on your curves, you have such small breasts.”, Lilith commented as she placed her hands on Vithossa’s chest, moving her fingers around to feel the small breasts of the young girl.  
“Ay! It’s because I am young!”  
Lilith let out a little chuckle, and retreated her hands as the palanquin door opened again so they could step up.  
Finding Vithossa a room was not hard, with Lilith having a brothel so large there were always at least ten rooms free. The young girl was amazed by the riches found there, and how comfortable everything was; she felt like she was dreaming, but everything she touched was real. Lilith seemed very nice to her, showing her around and answering all her questions.   
The other ladies there were however not as welcoming, perhaps because they were seeing her as a threat to their own business. They would glare and investigate her body, sometimes making little comments under their breath. Vithossa easily noticed that, and after the tour, simply locked herself in her room and unpacked until it was time for the brothel to open.  
Meanwhile, at the entrance of said building, some teenagers were pulling on the robes of another, laughing and making jokes.  
“Come on now, Zylror!”, one said, pushing Zylror from behind. “You are the only one from our group that is still a virgin.”  
“So?! I told you my parents are very strict! Stop pushing me, I will not do it.”  
“You talk as if you are the girl that will be deflowered. Male virginity isn’t even represented by anything, it’s not like they’ll ask for your blood on the bed sheets.”, the other joked.  
“I shouldn’t do it. I’ve seen you with your old hags, so old they could be your grandmothers, not mothers!”  
“If you bury your head in books, you’ll end up a grandpa with no grandsons. Hey, you got more money than us, maybe you will get a really pretty one.”  
“Haha, like that will make everything better.”  
“Come on now, don’t be a pussy! Everyone jokes how you’re the only one in the group that’s a virgin.”  
Zylror looked at his friends, ready to extend his wings to push them all away and leave. But at the same time he was flustered, feeling so much pressure around him to do it. Truth be told, ever since he had his first heat, he tried his best to ignore it, and it seemed to work for a while. But as time passed, he started feeling more and more sexually frustrated, and it sometimes even showed.   
“… fine, I’ll do it.”, he gave up. “But if you tell anyone about this… your parents will not know where your bodies are. Got it?”  
“Ok ok mister creepy.”  
Laughing some more, they dragged Zylror inside. He felt ashamed of admitting defeat, and also of how easily his own body gave in, feeling his blood rushing through his veins.  
Finally inside, he just stood there and looked down as the girls were brought in front of him and his friends. When he finally looked up, he was shocked to see who was standing in front in him: Vithossa.  
“What the… Vithossa?”  
“Zylror?!”  
They stared at each other for a little while, before he suddenly blurted out:  
“I-I pick her.”  
Before Vithossa could process anything, he grabbed her by the arm and took her in the hallway.  
“You are a whore?”  
“Shh… let’s go into my room, I will tell you everything, I promise.”  
Once there, she sat him on the bed with care, then held her hands to her heart and bit her lower lip. Vithossa then started to tell exactly what happened, how she got kicked out, and how she ended up there, while Zylror was listening carefully.  
“And you started working… today?”  
“Yes. You would be my first client. And here I was worried some gross old man would pick me… yet here you are. It’s like the Warlords picked you to meet me here… it must be a sign.”  
“I suppose. My friends made me come here, and seeing you here… made me feel more comfortable. Is it the same for you?”  
“Yes, I feel so much better you are going to be the one to deflower me!”  
“Wait, deflower you?!”  
“Well… yes. I mean, I am the whore, you are the customer… seems like that is the outcome. And I am eighteen now, so we can do it!”  
“I… I do not know. I shouldn’t, my parents would be so angry… and they would demand to see you. And they know you are the sister of the Royal Consort, which my father hates.”  
“Do not tell them, why do they need to know your every move? Please… I do not want some creepy dude deflowering me. I know it may seem weird because we only met once before… but I want you to be the one to do it.”  
She kneeled before him, and took his hands in hers, looking into his eyes. Zylror’s face went entirely red and looked away, then muttered:  
“I guess… we can do it. I mean… I suppose I wouldn’t mind you being my first.”  
Hearing that, her face lit up and she jumped up, hugging Zylror tightly.  
“Thank you! Thank you so much! You have no idea how much this means to me!”  
Letting go of him, Vithossa then displayed a soft smile as she put her right hand on his chest, and slowly pushed him so he laid in bed.  
“I… don’t really know how this is supposed to go, honestly.”  
“Me neither, Zylror.”, she giggled. “But we know the basis right? That should be enough.”, Vithossa then reassured him as she sat on top of him.  
She could feel her fingers sink into the fur of his robes as she pulled them away a bit. Then, with slow movements, she undid all the buttons of his shirt, to reveal his chest.  
“You have quite the muscles I see. Well, not exactly the best I have seen, but close enough.”  
“I don’t exactly work out too much. I guess that… I should maybe start undressing you as well.”  
Vithossa let out a little giggle seeing him so shy, and he did the same shortly after. Beginning to undo the top of her dress, he looked extremely nervous revealing her breasts.  
“Wow, they are… so small… “  
“Don’t you like that?”  
“I never really had a preference.”  
He then puts his thumbs on her nipples, and began to make little circles with them, his face getting redder and redder with each little moan Vithossa would let out.  
“For someone with no experience… you sure know what to do… “  
“I guess this is what I get for spying on my parents once… “  
“Zylror… come on top of me. Please… I want to see you on top of me.”  
Looking surprised at her, he eventually obliged and slowly rolled her on her back. Vithossa looked at him and parted her legs a little better, so his body can fit well in that spot. She then took her hands away from her breasts and put them on his face, caressing gently his features.  
“You are nervous. I can tell.”  
“And you aren’t? You are going to be in more pain than me… “  
“I know but… you are patient with me. You give me time to get used to this.”  
“I am not sure if ‘giving you time’ is the best way to put it… I… am nervous myself. What if somehow my parents find out? Oh they will never let me hear the end of- “  
His ears jerked up in surprise as Vithossa silenced him with a kiss. With one of her arms wrapped around his neck to keep him secured, she guided the other towards his belt, undoing it slowly.  
“Are… “, he started after Vithossa broke the kiss, “Are you sure you want to do it?”  
“Yes. I do. I said it once and I will say it again, I want you to be the one that deflowers me. I trust you… it sounds crazy, I know it does, but out of everyone here, I know only you! The rest are strangers that say things behind my back… you are not like that. I know you, as little as I do, and in this sea of strangers… you are the only person I know. I am not going to back out… please… be my first man, and I will be your first woman. It can be our little secret.”  
“This would be the first secret that I keep from my parents… “, he muttered as he could feel her free hand creep into his pants, getting to caress his penis with gentle stokes.  
“Won’t that make everything more exciting? Please… take me, Zylror.”  
Zylror looked down at her, his breathing getting a bit faster with each move of Vithossa’s hand. But he did not remain motionless, as one of his hands did not only begin to grope her breast again, one of his tails was making its way up her thigh, lifting her skirt.  
In just a few more seconds, both ended up completely naked, holding each other close, Zylror’s wings completely stretched over them, almost like hiding them in their intimacy. He would begin to plant little kisses on her cheek, then her neck, and slowly going down towards her chest, until he stopped at her other breast and began to suckle on it gently, as Vithossa would drag her fingers through his hair.  
“Ah… watch out for your fangs… they are poking my nipple a bit… “  
“Sorry… do you want me to stop?”  
“Stop?”, she let out a giggle. “No… do not stop. Just be a little bit more careful.”  
Vithossa smiled softly, then let out another moan as Zylror resumed on his action, and one of his tails began to grind itself against her pussy, the other wrapped around he own tail, like two serpents tightly intertwined.  
“Please… stop teasing… I am ready for any kind of pain. Please, just do it, stop teasing me, my whole body is on fire… “  
Zylror looked into her eyes, and raised himself a little to be able to align himself with her own body. His blush was still present, even more so seeing himself not just naked, but aroused, his erect penis resting gently against her pussy.  
“Please… “, Vithossa would plead again, her body shaking from being apart from Zylror’s, who until then kept her warm.  
Before she could beg him again, he closes his eyes tightly and slid inside her, then pushed himself into Vithossa’s little body as much as he could. He could hear her let out a loud, quick scream, followed by what seemed to be sobbing, but he could not find the courage to look; he knew what he was going to see wouldn’t be pretty.  
Eventually however, he found the courage to open one pair of his eyes. He could see Vithossa having her arms wrapped around herself, twitching and hiding her face in her own hair as tears would come out her eyes, and, when he lowered his sight, a little blood sprouting from her entrance, flowing down to the sides.  
“I-”, he began, waking from the shock, “I did it… I did it! Oh by the Warlords’ names, I did it… “  
“Mhm… yes you did… we both did it.”, she had the courage to speak, looking at him again. “You really went in didn’t you… “  
“I am so sorry… I didn’t realise-”  
“It’s fine, honestly. I’d rather have to quick like that… but please do not move yet. Let’s try get closer… keep each other close.”  
She then put her hands on his shoulders, and wrapped her legs around his waist, using her knees to push him forward. Zylror understood the signal and leaned over her, only a few inches between their faces.  
“You’re crying… “  
“No, I am fine now, really. It’s just a few tears. Soon there will no more to shed.”  
Zylror looked into her eyes, then kissed her passionately on the lips. He did that numerous times during the night, as they stood embraced, even well after they have long finished. At first Vithossa didn’t know if she could let him spend the night, but she stopped caring once she saw him appear tired. Under the covers, they slept close to each other, even if their bodies were burning.  
The next morning, he was still there, laying on his stomach and holding one arm under the pillow, and one over Vithossa’s body. He woke up first, remembering that his parents were most likely anxiously waiting for him at home, and jumped out out bed to his clothes.  
“Why are you in such a hurry… ?”, Vithossa asked as she was still half asleep.  
“My parents… they must be worried sick! I have to hurry home… “  
“Wait! Before you go… I need to give you the Blood Pendant.”  
“The what now?”  
Zylror looked at her confused, not knowing what she was referring to. Vithossa put a finger up to signal him to wait there, and lowered her upper body to get something under the bed, something he soon discovered was a bottle-like pendant with slim silver decorations, and a little knife.  
“What is that-”  
He immediately backed out and gasped, lowering his ears in shock and Vithossa lifted her left breast a bit and stabbed herself in it, not too deep to be considered a serious wound, but enough for it to bleed. She then opened the pendant and put it by the cut, pressing on her breast gently to draw out more blood, until the little container was halfway filled.  
“This… is a Blood Pendant. Your parents never told you about it?”  
“No… “  
“When a man deflowers a woman, she must give him this, with blood from her left breast. It’s… a symbol. That you were my first man. Please, take it.”  
She extended her arms, holding it in front of Zylror, who still looked confused and even a bit disgusted.  
“If what you say is true… if my parents see this, they will want to know you. And don’t get me wrong, you seem like a nice girl but… they would not approve.”  
“You don’t have to show it to them. Just take it… and if you can… wear it.”  
She smiled a little bit as he took the pendant by the chain, and put it around his neck before buttoning up his shirt.  
“You know, Zylror… I hope you will come again here. Or maybe… we could go out, talk… know each other more… of course, if you want to! I just thought that maybe, maybe we can be more than just this, because I like you.”  
“How can you be so sure you love me-”  
“I didn’t say I love you, dummy! Just that I like you, that’s not the same thing. But who knows, maybe we can reach love as well.”  
Vithossa looked into his eyes, and her smile widened in a mischievous way. Zylror, on the other hand, was blushing and looking away.  
Ever since that day, he seemed more relaxed, and a lot happier. He would sometimes write letters to Vithossa, inviting her to lunch or just to walk a bit in the Capital. Their visits in the brothel did not stop either, but they wouldn’t always have intercourse; sometimes, they would spend the night talking, drinking tea and then going to sleep. Zylror’s friends soon caught on to his secret, and would often tease him about his girlfriend.  
But while Vithossa’s life took a turn for the better, Lendenta’s turned sour. Just as Nazziola predicted, she had many miscarriages due to her husband’s harsh behaviour. Even if only a year passed, she lost so many babies that she wouldn’t even bother telling Kadrainth if she was pregnant again or not, since it stopped mattering; every single time, she would lose it. Only one got to stay in the womb for three months before it died, due to Kadrainth hitting her in the abdomen with his tail once when he was very angry.  
“Oh, Nazziola… why must this happen?”, Lendenta asked as she sat in a chair in the garden, where she and the Royal Magi would sometimes meet to talk in private. “Why must Fate hate me so much?”  
“My dear Lady, I cannot ask Fate, but if I could… I would. It is indeed a terrible destiny, but it is one we cannot change.”  
“I lost… I even forgot how many, way too many. This shouldn’t be happening. Look at me now, my body is ruined. I cannot even walk properly now because everything feels sore! And I bet… I bet on my father’s fortune Kadrainth will want to mate with me again tonight. Even though I keep telling him to let me rest.”  
“How are your lessons with him, by the way?”  
“Not too successful… though I did teach him to say please and thank you, so there is that. It’s like training a wild feral, I give him treats when he behaves.”  
“What about the promise of mating if he learned?”  
“Didn’t work out too well, so I had to switch.”  
Nazziola sighed, then looked over Lendenta’s shoulder to see two people coming towards them. Lendenta caught onto it, and turned as well.  
Soon, in front of her bowed one large man, with two pairs of wings, his spiked tail resting gently on the ground. His hair was dark red with a lighter ombre and some streaks, horns curved inward, almost forming a circle, his skin grey, and his eyes red with black scleras, three pairs and a seventh right between the thin arched brows. The right side of his face had scars over his eyes, but they were not blind. Next to him was a woman, a lot smaller than him, her head barely reaching his thighs. She possessed feline ears and tail, her blonde hair turning black at the tips in a bun, some strands in the front that were left free bending inward, framing her round face. She would wear a dark red dress that reached her ankles, and a coat on top in a lighter shade, lined with white fur at the collar. Around her neck was a choker with a blue stone on it, similar to the bracelets on her wrists. She bowed her head in front of Lendenta and Nazziola, then looked up and opened her eyes, one green one blue, with scleras of a way lighter shade of the color.  
“Fyragga… there you are. And who is this?”  
“Oh my Lady, Asyagga insisted that I take out today… this little one. Her name is Azalea.”  
“Aw, is she your maid? Oh but she is very cute. Hello, Azalea.”  
But the woman did not move, and instead looked at her master and gulped.  
“Well go on, greet the Royal Consort! Must I tell you everything you need to do?!”  
“Fyragga… watch your mouth.”, Lendenta scolded. “Slave or not, we treat other people with respect.”  
“Thank you… thank you my Lady.”, Azalea managed to mutter, looking at Lendenta with hope.  
“Why did you come here, Fyragga? Did you find anything about where my sister might be?”  
“Azalea! Do tell the Royal Consort. And do it like I told you to.”  
“I… my Royal Consort, my Master-”  
“Fyragga, you will speak. Not her. She is not your little toy.”  
Feeling offended by Lendenta scolding his, he rubbed his short beard before clearing this throat.  
“We have no news of the sister. We have tried everywhere… but nobody seems to recognise her. The last spot we could check would be brothels.”  
“A brothel… I do not think she would start working there. Yes, she is a bit vain… but she is just a child, nobody would allow her to work there.”  
“I would recommend looking there just in case.”  
“No, it’s impossible, we would just be wasting our time. Perhaps… she ran away in another region. Try searching like that.”  
“I… as you wish, Royal Consort.”, Fyragga admitted defeat. “But it would not be very wise to exclude even that-”  
“If all else fails, then fine, you can search in the brothels as well. But I hardly believe she would want anything with that. And besides, a drunk child is very unappealing to any man.”  
“I will do as you order. Azalea, come! We must get to work quickly.”  
Lendenta watched the two carefully, her mind deep in thought. To see Vithossa in what she, much like many others, believed to be a dirty and abusive environment was impossible. She was a spoiled one, never settling for little, and yet, maybe, just maybe… her thought began to slowly believe she might have gone there.  
“Sister, oh sister… I pray to the Warlords I will find you one day. One day… one day I will. I can only hope then you will have the heart to forgive us all.”


	4. May the Warlords Have Mercy

Two whole years have passed since Lendenta became Royal Consort, and Vithossa became homeless. Many things did not change, however; one would still have an unhappy marriage, the other would still sell herself for money, while maintaining a secret relationship with the only man in her life that showed her kindness.  
Lendenta’s body became frail in that period of time, the many miscarriages she had making everyone believe she turned infertile. And in secret, she hoped that as well, thinking Kadrainth would leave her for another one. Alas, he did not, as the Beast took a liking for her, a liking which the woman was now regretting. She would still ask Fyragga if he found her sister, hoping that at least one happy thing could happen in this period.  
Vithossa, on the other hand, had it a little better. While she loathed the countless other men that shared her bed, she had her lover for comfort. Many nights she ended up crying in his arms, not from any sort of abuse, but from feeling like she was cheating on him.  
“How can you even look at me… “, she would often sob while her head would be hidden into the folds of his robes, listening to his beating heart. “I can’t call myself a good lover! I have cheated so many times on you… all these men, and yet you still love me! How?! How can you do it?!”  
“Vithossa… “, Zylror would whisper in her ears, holding her close and cradling her, “I know you don’t want those men. I know you don’t like them. And I know this is your job. If I were uncomfortable with this I wouldn’t be here anymore.”  
He would then kiss her, and then hum to her until she would feel better. Vithossa ended up feeling so safe in there, listening to his heart, that she would do that even in her sleep, breathing slowly alongside the heartbeats.  
One day, the two decided to go out, as entertainers have come into the market to show off their tricks, and many merchants would make all kinds of offers to attract customers. So they weren’t recognized, Zylror and Vithossa would often wear hoods or veils on their heads. That time was no different, keeping each other close in the crowd as they held their hands tightly.  
“It’s so crowded… these entertainers sure do attract a lot of people.”   
“I know, but hey, this is the only time you might be able to find some really good food. Merchants put out their best products only during special events, Vithossa.”  
“Ah… I see.”  
Zylror smiled, then let go of her hand to wrap it around her waist, and kissed her forehead. She just let out a little giggle before hiding her face into the veil, and looked at him with love.  
“You know what we should do, Zylror?”  
“Hm?”  
“Get something to eat, then hide in a remote place… and eat. We can’t eat in this crowd, one push and you end up spilling all your food.”  
“You do have a point… alright, why not?”  
It did not take them long until they found something that suited their tastes, and then went looking for any remote place they could find. One in particular seemed almost unbelievable to them with how barren it was: a small alley that lead to a pub, which was closed at that time due to the owner selling drinks in the market. They sneaked there, and hopped the fence, then got to the door. However, once they got to listen through it, their ears seemed to pick up something, like a moan, very faint among the cheering crowd in the market.  
“What is that… ?”, Zylror asked, unsure if he should knock.  
“Perhaps some other people that, just like us, have decided to retreat here to have a meal?”  
“Doesn’t sound like a meal… either that or it’s bloody delicious. I think we should look for another place.”  
“Why?”, Vithossa meditated on the matter, looking into his eyes as she spoke a little louder than usual. “If they here to eat just like us, surely they can spare us a table.”  
“I don’t doubt that, I just don’t want to end up locked in a building with some thieves.”  
“We’ll take a peek inside, and see from there. It’s can’t be that bad.”  
Zylror let out a sigh in defeat, and let Vithossa put her hand on the door handle, and twist it slowly until a little click was heard, indicating the two they could push the door.  
She opened it a bit, and stuck her head in cautiously, but nothing could prepare her for what she was about to see; a man and a woman, all alone in there, making love right on the floor. Vithossa could tell they didn’t notice her yet, but her surprise got the best of her, and let out a loud gasp and she flung the door open. Getting scared as well, Zylror looked inside, and then quickly took a few steps back.  
“Fyragga… Asyagga… no… “  
“What? Zylror, what is going on?”  
Fyragga quickly stood up, fastening back his belt, as Asyagga, a woman with the same skintone as him, blue hair and eyes and same horns, closed her legs and quickly turned on her knees.  
“Zylror… stay in that spot. And you too little lady. I can explain.”  
“No… no no no, this can’t be. It must be a dream.”  
“Zylror, tell me what’s going on!”, Vithossa demanded, grabbing Zylror’s arms and giving him a little shake.  
“THEY ARE TWINS!”, he screamed before she covered his mouth to muffle anything he further wanted to say.  
“Please do not tell anyone!”, Asyagga managed to say. “Please, I beg of you… they will kill us if you do. They will publicly ridicule us and kill us slowly in front of everyone… !”  
“Zylror.”, Fyragga called as he kneeled next to his sister and held her close. “Do not tell your father, I beg of you. We beg of you.”  
“I- “  
“We promise we won’t.”, Vithossa answered for both. “I know outcasts like you… I am one. For two years I have been nothing but an outcast trying to blend in.”  
“What do you mean?”, he wondered, looking at Vithossa as she sat on the floor next to them and opened up her food package.  
“How about we sit and talk? You can tell me about your story. I can tell you about mine. I have a feeling you two might find in me someone that understands you.”  
“How can you understand us?!”, Asyagga cried as she covered her face with her hands. “How can you understand a brother and sister in such a relationship… “  
“I can ask the same thing. How can you understand a young whore? Come on, take deep breaths, and let us talk. Zylror, come love, sit next to us.”  
After a bit more nagging, the two eventually opened up more and agreed to eat with them.  
“So… “, Vithossa broke the ice, “Tell us about yourselves. Then I will tell you about me. Do not be afraid, I will not judge.”  
“It all started back when we were born.”, Fyragga began, then drank a cup of water.  
“We are twins. We shared the same womb, we came into this world together.”, Asyagga continued. “We would always be put in the same bed to sleep, at the same table to read and write and eat… everything we did, we did together. People just thought we were very close, but in reality… something sparked between us. It look us a long while to figure out it was love. I remember… when we were eight, and tried kissing for the first time. We saw our parents doing it, and tried ourselves. We were so confused… since we didn’t understand what was so special about touching mouths, remember, Fyragga?”  
“I do… “  
“People would take it as a joke when I said I want to marry him. But I meant it, I always meant it. He was meant to be mine, and I to be his. We entered this world together and we were meant to live in it together. Nobody knows about us, that we are secretly married. They just think we are very picky because none of us is officially married to anyone.”  
“So then… what about your two children, Asyagga… ?”, Zylror whispered as he looked at her.  
“She birthed seven of my children.”, Fyragga admitted. “Only two left the crib.”  
“They are our little wonders, really. Perfect little children… they do know of us. But have taught them to never say it to anyone.”  
“Fascinating… “, Vithossa mused, staring at them.  
“Fascinating?! What do you think we are, some animals for you to look at?!”  
“Fyragga… my love, stay calm! We are in no position to judge anyone.”  
“I just find it fascinating how you two hid it for so long, yet today it was the day you got busted. You must be truly thankful I or Zylror will not tell a word.”  
“Truly we are… “, Asyagga thanked. “Now, you promised you would also tell us about your story.”  
“Of course. But for that, Zylror, step outside the building. And don’t peek. They do not need to hear your story, they know you and you know them.”  
Giving him a warm smile, she watched Zylror look rather hurt and offended at her, then getting up and stepping outside.  
“Why did you tell him to go out?”  
“Because, Fyragga, he does not know my story. Well, he knows part of it. I do not want him to know the other part… he would surely leave me.”  
“Why?”, Asyagga asked, becoming intrigued.  
“Because I lied to him. Now, let me tell you about me… I am Vithossa the Beautiful, daughter of Commander Farcas. His youngest daughter, my older sister is the Royal Consort Lendenta. I met Zylror for the first time at her wedding. That also where I got drunk for the first time… then got kicked out at the age of fourteen. I was homeless for a while, then became a whore to earn money fast. I will admit, I have high standards, and maybe a bit of a gold digger as well.”, she trailed off with a giggle. “When during my first night, I saw him, I thought to myself the Warlords must have put him there to deflower me. He was quite hesitant at first… but I lied… I lied I was eighteen. It was the only way I could get him to deflower me, not some older, gross man. No… I trusted Zylror enough. Even though it was the second time we met. And now… we are lovers. Lovers… that started a relationship based on a lie. But I know he is the one, and one day I will tell him the truth. But not today.”  
“And how old are you now?”, the blue haired lady asked again.  
“Barely sixteen.”   
“That is very… very young.”  
“I know. But you cannot report me or Zylror for this because we know your secret. And we cannot report you because you know our secret, plain and simple. You can have faith in us that we will not say anything.”  
“As you can rest assured we will keep our mouth shut.”, Fyrragga emphasized.  
“Seems like the food is all eaten as well… I think it is time for me to leave. Can’t leave Zylror alone for too long. That and soon… I will need to go back to the brothel.”  
“I see. Vithossa, we must thank you for choosing to side with us.”  
“As I said, Fyragga, do not worry. Your secret stays with us.”, she responded as she got up, then walked to the door.  
And so it was set between the four, a contract only in words that they shall keep each other’s secrets. It worked fine for a while for the twins, and for Vithossa it was very easy, as none of her clients seemed to take no interests in anything but the services she provided, but for Zylror it was the worst. Ever since Doguntunth caught onto the fact that his son seemed very tense, he tried everything he could to pull the words out of his mouth, and each day, little by little, he seemed to be getting closer.  
Until he managed to get all the information he needed.  
“Son.”, Doguntunth started as usual, looking at his son as he was working at his desk, and Zylror was reading in an armchair next to him. “You seem very nervous. What happened?”  
“Nothing, father, I promise. You have been asking me that for a month now.”  
“It doesn’t seem that way. You have been awfully quiet lately. Why is that?”  
“It’s nothing, I swear-”  
Zylror jumped out of his seat as Doguntunth flicked his tail quickly, creating a loud noise.  
“Zylror. I will ask this last time. What happened.”  
The young man was shaking, biting his lower lip and looking terrified by his father. Doguntunth rarely beat him, but when he did, it was rough enough to put Zylror in his place. Even at that age, he would still flinch when seeing his father lift his hand to strike him.  
“I WILL SAY! I will say, just please don’t beat me again!”, Zylror shouted, starting to panic.  
“I am listening.”  
“It’s Fyragga and Asyagga! They are in an incestuous relationship!”  
“… What?”  
“I caught them once, they were… being intimate. They told me they were together and made me promise I would keep my mouth shut and I have done this for a month and it was wearing the down-”  
“That’s enough.”, Doguntunth stopped the now hyperventilating boy, whose forehead got drenched in sweat. “You did good for telling me.”  
The father then got up from his chair, and walked up to him son, and gave him a warm hug. For Zylror it was for the first time in a long while that his father showed him affection, and it immediately seemed to calm him down.  
“There, my son… it’s alright. You did good by telling me, nobody should keep secrets from their father. Calm down… calm down. You did good. I will take care of it, you rest.”


	5. Sinners

Doguntunth was ready pretty fast to take care of the issue his son reported. Right the next day, the moment he caught Fyragga alone, he walked next to him and began a friendly chat.  
“What a lovely day is today, won’t you agree?”  
“Ah, Doguntunth, yes, yes it is.”, Fyragga replied with a smile. “Very sunny and warm.”  
“Perfect weather for some tea outside, won’t you agree? How about we have some tea in the garden. We could talk more and not be disturbed.”  
“Is there something you wish to tell me?”, Fyragga asked, getting a bit suspicious by Doguntunth’s kindness and friendliness.  
“Me? No, not at all. I am just very bored and in need of a friend to chat with, the King has been pretty busy lately… with mating with his wife that is. He’s like a maniac, I cannot wait for something to kill him and for us to move on.”  
“You mean for something to kill him after heirs are made. Do we really need to have this dynasty ended so quickly?”  
“You have a point, dear friend… but we shall see. Even with a dynasty ended we can still begin another.”, he proposed as he guided Fyragga in the garden, towards a more secluded table to rest.  
The two men took their seats as a maid brought them the tea in a hot teapot, alongside two glasses and some sugar on a tray.  
“Has the Royal Consort shut up about her sister?”, Doguntunth asked as he poured himself some tea.  
“For the time being, yes.”  
He then remembered meeting said sister, Vithossa, a month ago, when he and his twin sister were discovered to have a relationship. Fyragga never told Lendenta about her, by Vithossa’s request; in her eyes, they were no longer sisters. And if she could respect his and Asyagga’s marriage and not tell anyone, he could respect her choice and not tell Lendenta.  
“Finally! Honestly now… Farcas did the right thing. Nobody wants their family name tainted. But enough about that, drama doesn’t bring a good mood. Let’s talk about marriage and love! Those are very beautiful subjects.”  
“You? Talking about love and marriage? Get out! You are not even married, Doguntunth, I don’t care how many times you call Caervintaenth your wife.”  
“Says the pot to the kettle. Fyraggaa, I admit I am not married, I always say so.”  
“But why is that? And why do you call her your wife then?”  
“Wife is just a little cute nickname, nothing more. As for your first question… me and Caervintaenth had our son, Zylror, before we were even engaged. We never had a proper wedding, just started living together and caring for our baby boy. Did it hurt our relationship? Not at all. In fact, I could say we are closer than any married couple will ever be.”  
“I see.”  
“So then, why should we get married? For some rings on our fingers and some papers? It is not worth it, dear friend. If you love someone, you don’t need marriage to prove it. It shows in how you act around that person. But now, you make me wonder, Fyragga… why did you never get married?”  
Fyragga narrowed his eyes. The question seemed suspiciously worded, and while he knew Zylror knew about his secret, he liked to think the young man kept his mouth shut. The dragon tried to think fast of an answer, but Doguntunth was impatient.  
“Well?”  
“Well… I suppose I haven’t found the right woman yet. Didn’t even have the time, really… working as the Royal Spy is very hard, and it takes a lot of your time. You don’t have time for yourself, let alone for love.”  
“Oh come on now Fyragga. Surely you must have fallen for a lady or two. Perhaps a blue haired one… with blue eyes… and skin just like yours.”  
The last sentence made Fyragga nearly jump out of his seat as he looked down at his glass filled with tea. There was no doubt now, Doguntunth was clearly talking about Asyagga. This mind went rampant thinking of how he found out, and the first thought that came to mind was that Zylror. At that point he wasn’t sure how to get out of the situation faster, find the boy, and give him a good beating.  
“I- I think that I have some important matters to attend to, if you will excuse me-”  
“You are not going anywhere, Fyragga.”  
Finally looking up, he saw himself surrounded by guards, all pointing their weapons at him.  
“Zylror told me everything I needed to know. Fyragga, I arrest you and your sister- wife for crimes against humanity. Your sentence is death! Guard! Arrest him and get his wife and bastards!”  
“Don’t you dare touch my family!”  
The guards jumped on Fyragga, ready to pin him down and put him in shackles. But clearly he was more strong, pushing and tossing them around like rag dolls before spearing his wings and flying away. He knew he had to find his family, and he had to do it fast. The only place where Asyagga and the children had to be were at their home, and that was the first place he flied to.  
However, he arrived too late. From afar he could see guards holding his wife and two children hostage, waiting for him to drop to the ground as well and capture him. Fyragga was already very angry, what angered him more was that Zylror was there.  
“ZYLROR!”, he shouted as he landed, almost running to him. “YOU BASTARD! You promised to keep out secret, and you told Doguntunth about it! DO you have any remorse?! DO YOU?!”  
He wanted to grab Zylror by the throat, lift him up, and rip his neck open. He wanted to do many things with him, to teach him a lesson that he will never forget. But before he could do so, guards took advantage of him being distracted and quickly subdued him.  
“I… I’m sorry, I didn’t meant to… “, Zylror muttered, but stopped quickly.  
It didn’t take him long to notice Fyrraga wasn’t looking at it, he wasn’t willing to listen. Zylror felt defeated, but he also knew he had to do something to make up for his mistake. Without hesitation, he lunged at the guards nearest to him, and attacked them.  
“Asyagga! Run! Take the kids and Fyragga and run! I’ll hold them!”  
“Zylror… thank you! Thank you so much!”  
With adrenaline in her blood, Asyagga wasted no time and took her two children, a boy and a girl, and ran towards her brother.  
“Come on, Fyragga, get up! Zylror will keep them occupied!”  
“ZYLROR!”, Doguntunth screamed, huffing with rage. “How dare you?”  
The twins ran with their children as soon as they heard the scream, but Asyagga couldn’t help but pick up Zylror screaming in pain and then presumably falling onto the ground. She would have wanted to help him, but her and her family’s lives were on the line.  
Just as they were running towards the edge of the Capital to look for a portal, they stumbled across Vithossa.  
“Vithossa.”, Fyragga called as he grabbed her shoulders. “We must run. Zylror betrayed us.”  
“Easy, easy, Fyragga! He did what?!”  
“He told Doguntunth about our secret!”, completed Asyagga. “We must run away from here before the catch and kill us. He probably told your secret as well.”  
“No… he wouldn’t.”  
“We cannot be sure. Come with us, Vithossa. We’ll take care of you.”  
Vithossa stood there, unable to say anything. She just allowed herself to be picked up by Fyragga and dragged away from the scene. She was in such a shock, she couldn’t notice where she was taken. Next thing the young woman knew, she was in a house.  
“Vithossa… Vithossa. Are you ok? Can you hear us?”, Asyagga said as she grabbed Vithossa by the shoulders and began shaking her.  
“Ah! Yes, yes I can. Where… where are we?”  
“Don’t worry about this now. We’re safe here, and that is important. You can live with us.”  
“Why did you take me?”  
“Didn’t you hear why back in Lashe?”, Fyragga interrupted the ladies’ conversation. “Zylror told Doguntunth our secret. It wouldn’t surprise me if he told his father about your identity as well.”  
“That doesn’t answer my question. You could have left me there and I would have found out on my own.”  
“Dear, you kept our secret.”, Asyagga tried to explain. “You kept your promise, he didn’t. We couldn’t have left a friend behind, what if Doguntunth got his hands on you? What if he tried to get info out of you? You could have been seriously hurt!”  
“I… I guess… but my job there- Mistress Lilith! Oh she will kill me… “  
“Nevermind that now! You won’t be a whore anymore, you can be whatever you want to be! Besides, you’re young… why waste your youth?”  
Asyagga grabbed Vithossa’s chin, and lifting it gently.   
“We can start anew here. Away from them. What do you say?”  
“I do not have a choice now, do I?”, Vithossa asked rhetorically, but her words were bitter at the same time.


	6. Devotion and Betrayal

The next few days after the escape were fairly calm. Being only five people in one huge house, the place was quiet. Only from time to time, Fyragga would come home with an animal to be eaten, but other than that, nobody else was leaving the building.  
Until once, during dinner, Fyragga jumped from his seat at the table.  
"WE FORGOT AZALEA!", he yelled, realising his maid is still in Lashe.  
"Wait, who?", asked Vithossa, looking confused at Asyagga and twirling her fork on the plate.  
"Azalea is our maid... I told you to grab her before we leave!"   
"I thought you had her!"   
"I was carrying our children- you know what? Yelling like this at each other won't help us. You had to bring Azalea here, so you go retrieve her from Lashe."   
"Me? What about you two? Who is going to hunt for you?"   
"We will manage until you return."   
"And what if I don稚 return?"   
Asyagga stood there in silence for a few seconds.  
"Then we will find ways to survive."   
And so, it was settled; Fyragga would go to Lashe, retrieve the maid, and hope she didn'y tell Kadrainth's guards anything. But even for a spy, the task was daunting, because he, much like many other Lashian dragons, did not possess the gift of magic and couldn't shapeshift; that didn't stop him from sneaking in the Capital.  
Upon reaching their former home, Fyragga noticed there were guards everywhere at all entrances except one; a secret tunnel underneath the earth, in which Fyragga crawled until he reached the trapdoor that led to the inside of the house. Much to his surprise, there were no guards there, possibly being more focused to guard the outside than the inside.  
Hopping out of the tunnel, his eyes quickly spotted Azalea; she was chained into Fyragga's own interrogation chamber, her face and clothes all covered in her blood. The poor woman was looking down, sobbing, and when she started to hear Fyragga's steps, her head rose, revealing her teary and bruised face as she cried out:  
"Please, no more! I am just a maid, I never asked for this- MASTER!"   
Fyragga quickly put a hand over her mouth to shush her.  
"Shh, I am not supposed to be here. But I came back to retrieve you. What have they done to you?"   
"My master, they tried to get info from me! About where you and Lady Asyagga, and Lady Vithossa are! But I was brave, I endured their torture until... until..."   
"Until what?:   
Azalea then dropped her head again, staying silent.  
"Don't you look away when I am asking you a question! Answer me!"   
From his shout, Azalea jerked up again and, with tears flowing from her blue eyes, screamed with pain in her voice:  
"They tried to get from me the location of your hideout! I tried not to tell, but what they did to me-I broke down! I broke down and told them!"   
"You what?! You idiot-"  
"Please, let me continue my master!", she pleaded. "I told them, but the Warlords must have been merciful of me, for I said it in my mother tongue! Not many know it, Lord Doguntunth is trying to find out what it meant, but they won't get the true info out of my mouth! Not while you are here, with me..."   
"I will bring you to our hideout. I need to get these chains off of you."  
Taking out a dagger, Fyragga began to cut at the cuffs. Azalea looked at him, smiling and whispering blessings for her master.  
"Oh, my master...I need to tell you some more information."   
"What is it?"   
"We all are branded traitors. If you ever planned to come back here, it's impossible. They will kill us all if we ever set foot in Lashe again."  
"Then we never come back to Lashe. It's just one of billions and trillions of worlds, we can manage."  
"And, my master... Lord Doguntuntha son... he confessed.   
"I know he told Doguntunth about me and Asyagga."  
"He also confessed about his affair with the whore Vithossa. She was later recognised to be Royal Consort Lendeta's younger sister. The Dragonlord tortured him as well... scarred his face and chest in a frenzy, even though the poor boy was screaming for his mother and father's forgiveness. Dreadful scene."  
"So we did well taking Vithossa. One cuff down, one more to go. Can you walk?"  
"No, they beat my ankles and twisted them. Lift my skirt, my master, and you can see them swollen and bleeding."  
"I would rather not."   
After the last cuff was broken, Fyragga picked Azalea up, ready to go back into the tunnel. The blonde lady looked at her master with love in her eyes, then pressed her head and left hand against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.  
"I still cannot believe you came back to me... thank you so much master!"  
"I had to, you are me and Asyagga's maid. And your services for us will not go unnoticed."  
"This cannot be the only reason. A maid is just that, a maid. You can get another. And out of all maids... you chose to save me... this must mean something."  
"The others are most likely dead. You were around me at all times, so of course they kept you alive for info."  
"No, my master, I believe there is more to it."  
"What are you talking about?", he asked, getting into the tunnel with Azalea.  
"This may sound crazy, master, but I- I have to confess! My heart aches every second I do not confess, so I must! I did not like your company at first, but slowly... you may have been rough with me, you may have punished me in the most vile ways for misbehaving, but my master, my only master... I LOVE YOU!"  
Azalea grabbed his face with her hands and made him look at her as she shouted those three last words, her cheeks her from embarrassment. She hoped to see a smile on his face, or at least a smirk; instead, he looked emotionless for a few seconds then turned his head again.  
"I am your master. Of course you love me."  
"No, not like that!". Azalea corrected him. "I love you like how the Sun loves the Moon, like how a wife loves her husband! I love you... not as my master, but as my lover."  
"I never even slept with you. Nor would I be able, look at you so small and frail." he commented, keeping is monotone voice.  
"I do not need sex, my master. I only need you to hold me, like you hold me now, say you love me, kiss me, embrace me"  
Just then, Fyragga stopped walking and looked at her again.  
"The only woman I will ever love will be my sister."  
He then looked away again and continued walking. But Azalea's spirit was broken. She could never imagine such a rejection from the man she loved in secret for many years, and to whom she finally had the courage to confess. It was not at all like her mother told her, now all her words seemed like lies. She stood there, silent, letting her tears slowly escape her eyes. Azalea wouldn't even bother to wipe them away, letting them flow on her chest like little droplets of rain. She became in fact so out of touch with reality, she did not realise where she was until Asyagga picked her up.  
"Look at you! So bloody and beaten! Let's go inside, I will patch you up there. You will need a lot of time to recover."  
"Please, mistress... just let me die. I lost my will to live.", Azalea whispered, her voice hoarse from crying.  
"What are you talking about? Stop speaking nonsense!"  
And with that, Azalea shut up.  
The bandaging process was fairly easy, with the blonde lady being very obedient. After Asyagga laid her in bed, she then sat in a chair next to the bed.  
"Do you want me to blow out the candle?" Asyagga asked, for it was night already.  
"Mistress... how can one man shatter a heart?", Azalea asked out of the blue.  
"I am afraid I cannot answer you. I never knew such pain."  
"My heart aches, mistress! I should die. My love does not love me back."  
"Azalea, stay strong. So what if one person does not love you back? You will fall in love again-"  
"NO!"  
"Yes you will. We all say our last love will be the last in our lifetime, but we lie when we say that. You have to pick yourself up, grow stronger, and with patience you will find a new love, someone who will treat you better, someone who you will look at and see as your soulmate."  
"And for how long do I have to wait?"  
"It depends solely on you."  
Asyagga quickly stopped talking as she could hear Vithossa throw up again.  
"It's been the fourth time this week... what kind of stomach bug can even do such damage."  
Asyagga bent over, and kisses Azalea's forehead gently before tucking her in and blowing out the candle.   
The next few months were rather quiet, until news spread around the Capital like wildfire; Royal Consort Lendenta was about to give birth. Everyone was shocked, as the King never announced his consort was with child, and even more so that she, after all she痴 been through, managed to carry a baby to term.  
Everyone was around her during the birth, except Kadrainth. The midwives would give her advice, kept telling her to push and would praise her when she managed to get the baby out more. Her whole face was red, as were the sheets under her, soaked in blood. It was a painful, long and bloody birth, but in the end, she was given a small bundle to hold in her arms.   
"It's a girl, my Lady."  
As exhausted as she was, Lendenta looked down at the face of her daughter.   
"She looks so much like me...", she whispered as tears of joy ran down her cheeks.  
But soon, those tears became bitter.   
"I cannot raise her. I cannot."  
"Why is that, my Lady?"  
"Kadrainth wanted a male heir. He didn't want a daughter. What will he do to her when he finds out? He could kill her... or worst, even molest her. I believe he would be capable of that. I do not want to risk! Please, take her!"  
"I wouldn't dare, my Lady!" the midwife protested.  
"Please! I will tell Kadrainth the child was stillborn, and you better tell the other midwives the same tale. Take her, take her away from the Capital. Take her and put her somewhere away. Perhaps someone will have mercy and raise her."  
Lendenta then gave the newborn back to the midwife, ushering her to leave.  
The midwife wanted to protest again, but in the end, the Royal Consort's word was law as much as the King's was. And, with pain in her heart, she walked out of the room with the newborn girl, ready to seek anyone that would want to show mercy to such an innocent soul.


	7. Deceived

No matter how hard she tried, Lendenta’s mind always drifted towards the small daughter she gave away. She didn’t get a good look at the baby’s face, but the bundle was never leaving her mind. What happened to her? Was she adopted? Did she die? Will they ever meet again?  
That’s what she was praying for in temples. She would sit there on the cold stone and pray even for hours for the safety of her daughter, and of her younger sister as well. During one of those sessions, while she thought she was along, Lendenta heard some steps. She didn’t mind it, as she just assumed it was another person who came in to pray.  
The stranger however walked past Lendenta, and towards the altar. Lifting her eyes, Lendenta saw it was a woman, and she seemed to be tending to the altar offerings.  
“Excuse me.”, Lendeta said as she sat up. “Only the Priests and Priestesses are allowed to touch the offerings.”  
“And Witches and Sorcerers, my dear. We have the same duty.”, the woman corrected her, turning to face Lendenta.  
The woman was a Lashian witch, bird-like creatures with dark plumage and purple, iris-less eyes. Lendenta never saw one of them before, as they usually live in the catacombs underneath the cities, but she did hear about them.  
“You are…”  
“Just call me Fate.”, the lady interrupted Lendenta. “I can understand the confusion, we don’t go up here often. But sometimes we must tend to these temples.”  
“I thought you’d be in more ragged clothes… b-because that’s what I’ve been told!”  
“Well, yes, most of us aren’t exactly rich. But I, as their queen, get to wear something more… beautiful, I guess. Oh well, sorry if I interrupted your prayers, I will leave you to it now.”  
“No, wait!”, Lendenta nearly shouted, extending an arm in Fate’s direction. “I heard the queen of the Lashian witches can tell the future and interpret visions. Is it true?”  
“Yes it is. Do you have a vision you wish me to interpret? In that case, it will be one hundred silvers.”  
“One hundred…?!”  
“Well, one must make money to feed her people.”  
“…very well! But only because I am quite desperate.”  
Searching through her purse, Lendenta managed to pay the witch. Fate then sat in front of her.  
“Now, tell me what vision do you want me to interpret?”  
“When I was younger, I asked the Royal Magi about my fate, about my life as the Royal Consort. She told me I would lose many children that were fathered by my husband, but that I would give birth to twin boys. Unfortunately, they will fight for the throne their father will leave behind, and I will be forced to witness one of them die because of this.”  
“Royal Consort? So it means your husband is the King of Lashe?”  
“Correct.”  
“Hmm… to trust a Magi regarding the future is very risky. Give me your hands.”  
A bit hesitant, Lendenta eventually let Fate take her hands as the witch closed her eyes, breathed in and out three times, then let the young dragon go. She looked into Ledenta’s eyes, then shook her head.  
“Just as I expected. The Royal Magi’s interpretation was extremely flawed. Poor you, to believe such a thing…”  
“Then how do you interpret this vision?”  
“It is true, you have lost many children. I can feel it in the way you shield your weak womb. It is true, your twin sons will fight for the throne. But one of them doesn’t necessarily have to die.”  
“Then?”  
“The King is cursed. He is deformed like this because of a curse. His blood mother was a jealous woman, cursing under her breath the daughter her husband had with a past love. She was punished for this, and her youngest son was born deformed. Ashamed of showing such a monstrosity to her husband, she gave the newborn away to the previous King and Royal Consort of Lashe.”  
“So he is not… from the royal family?”  
“No, his blood is way more valuable. But the curse locks away what he truly is. True, blood must be spilled, and it must be his blood, but not necessarily from the twin boys. Could be blood spilled from his daughter-”  
“How do you know of my daughter?”  
“-or even his won blood.”, Fate finished her sentence, ignoring Lendenta’s question.   
“So you say… if his blood is spilled, the curse will be lifted?”  
“Indeed.”  
After the incident, Lendenta quickly returned to the castle. She was quite skeptical about Fate’s version of the prophecy, as she liked to call it, so she decided to pay Naziolla another visit, and see if what the witch said was true.  
“How could you listen to such rubbish?!”, was Naziolla’s first reaction upon hearing what Lendenta has done. “Witches are not to be trusted my Lady.”  
“Do they not serve the Warlords as we do?”  
“Yes, but their magic is occult. They are evil, and they are cunning. They would do anything for money these days. She surely wants the downfall of Lashe if she suggests you draw blood from the King.”  
“But what if what she says is true? What if the King is actually from another family? What if there is a way to lift this curse that deforms him? If I could cure this, perhaps I could find a kinder and wiser man, that would be a better King, and a better husband!”  
“Or you could damn us all by doing who knows what witch sacrifice. My Lady, I know I may sound harsh, but please do not trust that woman. Her kind is known to twist words and convince naive people such as yourself. Trust in me, this is why I am the Royal Magi, after all.”  
And with that, Lendenta was let go. The meeting with Naziolla left her more confused than she was before, not understanding what the fuss was about. What she knew was that Fate mentioned Kadrainth can be transformed from his current state, and that she was desperate to escape her husband’s barbaric behavior.   
So, during dinner, she managed to steal a knife, and kept it under her sleeve until it was time for bed. Lendenta thought a regular kitchen knife would do the trick, as she thought Kadrainth only needed to bleed from a wound in order for the curse to be lifted.   
Lendenta waited patiently for Kadrainth to fall asleep, holding the knife close to her chest. Much to her luck, he was sleeping on his side, facing away from her. That way, Lendenta could easily cut his arm, without having to move anything around. Once she thought he was sound asleep, she lifted the knife, and slowly got closer to him. Kadrainth didn’t seem to mind, perhaps thinking she was just huddling him for warmth, if he wasn’t asleep yet.  
Once she was close enough, Lendenta managed to slash her husband’s arm, drawing a quick, deep cut along the length of his arm. Kadrainth stood up from the pain, letting out a roar as he clutched his injured arm.  
“ARE YOU INSANE?!”, he yelled, growling at her.  
“I…”, she stuttered, trying to come up with a quick answer. “I-I can explain…!”  
“THEN EXPLAIN!”  
“Uh… assassin! I thought I saw an assassin g-get closer to you, and by some miracle I had this knife and-”  
“Enough. I need sleep.”, he dismissed her. “Tomorrow we meet important King from other land.”  
“King from another land? For what?”  
“Crystal ring around planet. Now go to sleep.”  
And with that, he laid in bed again and closed his eyes. Lendenta was in shock, seeing the action did nothing to help her husband, and almost threw the knife away in frustration. She settled for putting it on the nightstand, and lay in bed, hiding her face into the pillow.  
The next morning, the royal couple had to get ready as fast as they could, as the King and Queen from the other world could be there any minute. Lendenta watched her husband as he put on robes way fancier than usual, wondering how will he behave during the meeting. She prayed he would be good, and not make the two uncomfortable.  
When it came time to meet the two, Lendenta was shocked by the elegance the couple displayed. The King was dressed into black and dark blue robes, with multiple layers overlapping each other, fastened at the waist with a wide and thick material. His hair looked very silky and smooth, the blue curls wrapped around his two pairs of ears: one pair of elongated ears, decorated with many earrings, and the other being cat-like, cascading like waves. His wife wasn’t below him, the gemstones on her body radiating in the sun, and her purple markings clashing against her pink-toned skin was in harmony with her dress, and brought out her blue eyes. On her head she wore a massive silver headpiece with pink gemstones which has a pair of twisted horns, and on the back rested her hair, half blonde and half pink.  
As Kadrainth took the King inside the castle to talk, Lendenta was left alone with the King’s wife. The more she looked at her and walking closer towards her, the more she noticed the little details: her plump lips, her two pairs of wings and tail almost shining in the light, and the fact that she looked lightly pregnant, showing a bit of a swollen abdomen.  
“Excuse me, I am King Kadrainth’s wife. My name is Lendenta.”, she introduced herself.  
“Sheara Caducei. Pleased to meet you.”  
“I heard you and your husband came here for that crystal ring around out world…”  
“Indeed. But that’s about all I know. Avalon, my husband, hasn’t told me a word.”  
“You don’t look at all like us. No multiple eyes, vibrant colors, slightly smaller… and those gemstones. Are they part of your body?”  
“Yes, they are attached. And I know, what a shock we look different. It’s almost as if we come from different worlds.”, Sheara said sarcastically.  
“Forgive me.”, Lendenta apologized, then turned her eyes again towards Sheara’s baby bump. “I had a baby recently.”  
“Oh?”  
“But I had to give her away. Pretty sure the King wouldn’t want a daughter. You see, the King has many problems, psychological problems. I discovered that when-”  
“I am not interested, sorry.”, Sheara said as she put her hand up to signal Lendenta to shut up. “Please keep these matters to yourself and don’t tell strangers about your personal problems. It can get you in trouble if the wrong ears hear them.”  
“I’m sorry… it’s just that there’s nobody I can talk with in the entire castle-”  
“Yes there is. You just need to look harder. Talking to me about this, a person that has no idea what you went through, is a very bad idea. Just giving you some life lessons.”  
“Lady Sheara? Can I ask you something?”  
“If it’s about me listening to your life story and to give you advice, no. If it’s about something else… I suppose it’s alright.”  
“I noticed you are pregnant.”  
“Yes, it’s not as if you’ve been staring at my abdomen like some sort of vulture. What about it?”  
“I would like to ask you… to please be a good mother for your children. Don’t abandon them! Give them a good life, love and cherish them! There is no greater joy for a woman than motherhood!”  
“And what part of my personality, exactly, gives you the right to assume I will not be a good mother and that I need you to tell me this?”  
“I-”  
“This is not a good impression. At all.”  
“I’m sorry-”  
The scolding was interrupted by what seemed to be an earthquake, almost making the two women trip and fall. The entire movement was in fact created by the removal of the crystal ring around Lashe. As it passed by Lendenta and Sheara, the watched in horror as inside the crystal seemed to be a reptile-like creature, its purple eyes wide open and staring blankly at the two.  
The two Kings watched the process from the castle. While Kadrainth’s gaze was fixated on whatever creature was held inside, Avalon would sometimes glance at Kadrainth before finally having the courage to speak.  
“Kadrainth… do you still remember us? Do you remember me, or Sovaks, our brother… or maybe our sisters, Akkasha and Excelsior? Maybe our parents? Me, you and Sovaks resemble our mother so much…”  
But all his attempts seemed pointless. Kadraith wouldn’t even look at him, let alone communicate, but he certainly seemed confused.  
“I remember, when we were children… you were the baby of the group. You wouldn’t play with us, for you were too small, but as me and the others would play in the garden, you would sit on mother’s lap and watch us from afar, cooing and giggling every single time one of us would trip and fall. Or us trying to get you to play with us when mother wasn’t-”  
“I killed my family.”, Kadrainth cut him off quickly.  
Avalon’s furry ears dropped slightly as he looked up at Kadrainth. But before he could try speak again, Doguntunth entered the room.  
“My Kings, sorry if I interrupted something.”  
“No, you didn’t.”, Avalon sighs. “What is it?”  
“The crystal ring has been successfully taken away from Lashe. It’s ready to be taken to your world.”  
“Right. Hopefully, the warmer climate of Lothede will help and make the crystal easier to break.”  
“Please, follow me back to your carriage.”  
Avalon looked back at Kadrainth one last time, hoping the one he knew as his younger brother would respond. But the Lashian dragon remained quiet.  
“Yes, of course. Tell my wife to come to the carriage too, I will wait for her there.”


End file.
